Not that he really needed it, but Scottie Scheffler’s win in the American Express championship – in his first outing of the year – earned him a lifetime exemption on the PGA Tour, the accolade afforded those players to reach the milestone of 20 career wins on the US circuit.
Scheffler – who turns 30 in June – is not going anywhere any time soon, so safe to say that his roll of honour will only grow ever bigger with other more tangible milestones to be matched, among them his bid to become the eighth member of the career Grand Slam club.
That chance will come as soon as this coming June when he will bid to add the US Open at Shinnecock Hills to a collection that already includes two Masters, one US PGA and one Open championship (won at Royal Portrush last July). That his birthday falls on the Sunday of the US Open final round perhaps adds to the potential of achieving that feat on that day.
Scheffler earned $1,656,000 for his win at La Quinta to kick-start his season and the other milestone which fell nicely into place was that the pay-day brought his career earnings to $101,109,136 to become only the third player (after Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy) to pass the $100m mark in prizemoney on the PGA Tour.
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Woods (on $120,999,166) and McIlroy (on $107,981,766) are the only two players to have banked more in purses but the likelihood is that Scheffler (who $27,659,550 in prize money on the PGA Tour last season) will leapfrog over Woods, with McIlroy having matters in his own hands to stay clear of Scheffler and also move above Woods. Time will tell.
Women’s Irish Challenge to come to Malahide Golf Club
Reflective of the continued growth of women’s professional golf, this season’s Ladies European Tour Access Series (LETAS) will feature an extended schedule of 20 tournaments – including the Women’s Irish Challenge at Malahide Golf Club from July 29th-31st – with record prize money of over €1 million.
Similar to the Hotelplanner Tour on the men’s DP World Tour, the LETAS serves as a pathway for young professionals on to the Ladies European Tour with the leading seven players on the season-long order of merit earning full LET cards for 2027 while a further 25 spots (for those eighth to 32nd on the money list) will earn direct places to the LET Q-School finals.
The inaugural Women’s Irish Challenge was won last year by Anne-Charlotte Mora and this year’s tournament has been given a prime summer spot – between the Pitch 15 Open in England and Himmerland Championship in Denmark – this season.
The Madaef Open, the first event of the newly announced schedule, will take place in Morocco in April.
Word of Mouth
“Whoever calls my name next I’ll be there” – Will Zalatoris, who is playing on a medical extension following back surgery, on relying on sponsors’ exemptions to fill out his schedule on the PGA Tour. Playing for the first time on the US circuit since last May, Zalatoris – once ranked seventh in the world but who has slipped to 211th in the latest standings – returned to action with a tied-18th finish in the American Express and is also playing in this week’s Farmers Insurance.
By the Numbers: 1-1-5
Pádraig Harrington is the only Irish player in the field for this week’s Bahrain Championship on the DP World Tour; Séamus Power is the sole Irishman in the field for the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines on the PGA Tour; there are a quintet of Irish players competing in the SDC Open in Limpopo, South Africa, which is the first event of the year on the Hotelplanner Tour where Conor Purcell, Ronan Mullarney, Gary Hurley, Liam Nolan and Max Kennedy.
On this day: January 27th, 1974
Bobby Nichols, a native of Kentucky, fashioned out a hugely successful career on the PGA Tour – which included one Major success, in the 1964 PGA Championship – and his victory in the Andy Williams San Diego Open at Torrey Pines brought an 11th career win to add further silverware to his trophy cabinet.
The wonder, though, is that Nichols managed to enjoy such a fruitful life on tour given the seriousness of injuries sustained in a car accident as a teenager which saw him suffer a broken pelvis, concussion, back and internal injuries and which saw him hospitalised for 96 days.
His legs were paralysed for two weeks after the accident, the result of joy riding with other teenagers, but intensive physical therapy would see him regain full use of his limbs and go on to enjoy a long and successful stint on tour.
Nichols win in the San Diego Open – which remains on the PGA Tour under the more recent Farmers Insurance banner and still played at La Jolla – came after rounds of 69-69-68-69 for a total of 13-under-par 275, one stroke clear of runners-up Gene Littler and Rod Curl.
Social Swing
Maybe not the peak Tiger years like 2000 or 2006. But Scottie is as good as Tiger among every other yr And Scottie isn’t going to change swings drastically throughout his career either. Just gotta avoid cooking from time to time – Michael S Kim, the 42nd player in the world rankings, tips the cap to Scheffler ... and gives a little advice to stay out of the kitchen.
T2 in the desert. Good momentum to start the new year – Jason Day with his best finish anywhere since his runner-up in the 2023 Open Championship. The Aussie finished in a four-way tie for second in the American Express Championship, four shots adrift of winner Scottie Scheffler.
Always a great week at the iconic @dubaidcgolf. It really is one of the best courses and venues in the world of golf @dpworldtour – Pádraig Harrington enjoyed his stint in the desert, despite missing the cut in the Hero Dubai Desert Classic. The Dubliner remains on the circuit for this week’s trip to the Bahrain Championship.
Know the Rules
Q A player finds her ball lying next to a half-eaten apple in a bunker. She decides to move the apple, but in doing so accidentally causes her ball to move. She places her ball back on its original spot and plays it from there. What is the ruling?
A The player gets a one stroke penalty: such a situation is covered by Rule 15.1b and Clarification Loose Impediment/1, under which fruit that is detached from its tree or bush is a loose impediment, even if the fruit is from a bush or tree not found on the course. The player gets one penalty stroke for causing their ball to move while removing a loose impediment.
In the Bag
Patrick Reed – Hero Dubai Desert Classic (DP World Tour)
Driver – Titleist GT3 (8.5°)
3-wood – TaylorMade Qi35 (15°)
Utility iron – Titleist 716 T-MB (2016)
Irons – Grindworks PR-202 (4), Grindworks PR-101A (5-PW)
Wedges – Cleveland RTX6 (52°), Titleist Vokey SM10 (56° & 60°)
Putter – Scotty Cameron Tour Rat Proto 1.5
Ball – Titleist ProV1x
